Disclaimer: Power Rangers belongs to Saban. I own nothing other than Phoenix and the concept of her powers.


"So, what is your mom going to do with all this stuff, Kim?" Trini asked as she and Kim sorted through a moat of storage bins and boxes surrounding them. Jason and Zack sat on the floor of the Hart's attic on the other side of the pile of boxes and bins, cataloging what the foursome had already gone through.

Kim puffed out a breath of air, making strands of her hair flutter as she glanced around at their work so far. "Well…whatever we don't need or want, mom is going to sell at her firm's annual rummage sale next week."

"What about everything else?" asked Zack as he closed and shifted a box out of the way.

"We'll donate what we can, and everything that is staying will go out to my dad's old studio office above the garage." Kim replied, shifting her position to stretch out her legs.

"Oh my gosh…guys come look at this." Trini exclaimed as she lifted something out of the box she was currently sorting through.

"What is it, Trini?" Kim asked as she scooted closer to her as Jason and Zack stood up and wadded their way over the wall of boxes the group had created.

"I think it's a photo album." Trini answered as she sat a thick, leather-bound book with a metal clasp in her lap. Lifting the clasp, Trini flipped the album open.

"Oh my gosh…I haven't seen this in years." Said Kim, nostalgia clear in her voice.

"Who is the woman in that picture?" asked Jason, pointing to a yellowing black and white picture of a young woman sitting in the sand at what looked to be a beach, wearing a swimsuit reminiscent of the 1940s.

"That's my grandmother. My mom's mom." Kim answered as she traced the edges of the photo, a gentle smile forming on her face. "My parents named me after her."

"You look just like her." Said Jason, smiling at her as she looked up at him. Trini turned the pages as they looked through the pictures.

"Oh no." Trini laughed as she turned the page, her eyes landing on a photo much more recent than the older ones that made up most of the album.

"I remember this!" Kim exclaimed, now looking at the same picture as Trini. "This was from the Halloween when we were six."

"Oh man, can you believe our costumes?" said Zack as the four of them huddled together to look at the photograph. Jason was dressed as Han Solo, Zack was Batman, Kim was Princess Aurora from Sleeping Beauty, Trini was Princess Leia, and Billy was Doc Brown from Back to the Future.

"Look how small we all were." Jason commented.

"And you grew up to be such a strong and handsome young man." Zack joked, pinching Jason's cheeks.

Jason playfully pushed him away, laughing. "Knock it off, man!"

The group laughed at the boys' display of friendship as Trini closed the album and placed it into a box of things to keep.

"By the way, where is Billy?" Kim asked as Jason and Zacked both stood up to move back over to their previous spots on the floor."

"At the Command Center." Trini answered. "He said he wanted to help Alpha on the tests he's running on Phoenix and that he'd be here after they were done."

"I think our Main Brain has a thing for our new Fire Bird." Said Zack as a sly smile formed on his face.

"You think so?" Kim bemused at the thought of her clever friend and their newcomer being interested in each other.

"Absolutely." Zack replied. "When it comes to matters of the heart, the Zackman is your resident expert." He joked, causing his friends to roll their eyes in response and smile.

"He did seem rather fascinated by her. It's not every day you meet an actual phoenix." Trini commented as she pushed a completed bin over to Zack.

"Unless you're a Power Ranger." Jason added. As rangers, each of them had had their share of weird experiences since they're lives became anything but normal.

"True." Trini agreed as the four of them laughed. "Do you really think he likes her like that? We've only just met her, and Phoenix barely knows us."

"Yeah, maybe when Alpha and Zordon are done running tests on her, we could show Phoenix around Angel Grove." Jason suggested as he picked up another item from one of the storage bins.

"Hey, Kim, what's this?" Jason asked, holding up an elaborately decorated wooden box that was about the size of his hand.

"What's what?" Kim replied, bringing her head up from her own box to look over at him. Her eyes went wide as she noticed the decorated box in his hands.

"Oh my gosh…" said Kim, her voice just barely above a whisper. She stood up and hopped over the pile of boxes, over to Jason, kneeling down beside him. She gingerly took the box from Jason's hands. "This is my grandmother's music box."

"The one from the picture?" Trini asked.

"Yeah." Kim answered as she turned the box over in her hands, inspecting it. "She used to play it for me every night as a lullaby when I was a little girl."

Jason watched as Kim got lost in nostalgia, her eyes misting over as tears welled up in them. "It means a lot to her."

"Does it still work?" asked Zack, also looking over at the antique box in her hands.

"One way to find out." Kim replied as she set it down on the floor, and lifted the top. Disappointment covered her face when no music came from it.

"Oh…I forgot." Kim said in a mournful voice.

"What?" Jason asked, noting the look on her face and the tone in her voice.

"The part that turned the pins to play the music broke a long time ago." She answered, once more turning the box in her hands, noting a small hole on the side of it. "And the key to wind it is missing."

"We can show it to Billy." Trini suggested. "Maybe he can fix it."

"Yeah, and the key to it has to be around here somewhere." Zack interjected glancing around at their surroundings.

Kim starred at the box in her hands, considering their suggestions, then after a while, shook her head in the negative. "No…it's okay." Kim said. "We can give it away."

Trini's brows shot up at her words, leaning forward to look at her friend in pink from her spot behind the boxes. "Are you sure, Kim?"

"It means so much to you." Jason interjected, tilting his head down to catch Kim's eyes.

She was silent for a moment, pondering their objections. After a bit, she let out a small smile and nodded. "I'm sure. Besides, maybe it will make someone else happy even if it doesn't work anymore." Kim placed the antique box into one of the boxes of items to be given away when they heard footsteps climbing the stairs and Ms. Hart appeared at the top of the entryway.

"Hey kids, how's it going?" Maddy Hart asked, looking around at the mess of boxes and bins littering the floor. "It must be taking forever to get through all of this. Thank you for all the help."

"It's not so bad." Trini replied.

"Yeah, Trini and I just finished two more boxes for the guys to go through." Kim added.

"And we just finished boxing up four more. Two for the rummage sale, and two for storage in the garage." Said Zack as he patted the top of the box he just put down.

"Well, how about you kids take a break and wash up for lunch? I just put the food out on the patio." Ms. Hart suggested.

"Sounds good to me, I'm starved." Jason replied as he stood up and stretched out.

"Ms. Hart, you're speaking my language." Said Zack, giving the woman a charming smile as he stood up as well.

"Hey bro, let's take the boxes down first." Jason said, as he bent down to pick up two boxes for the sale, while Zack picked up the remaining two for storage. "You girls go ahead outside. We'll meet you after we take care of these." He added as he and Zack headed down the steps to the second floor, all three women trailing behind them.

"Man, I hope Billy gets here soon." Said Zack as he and Jason reached the bottom of the stairs to the main floor.

"He shouldn't be much longer." Jason replied as they dropped their boxes down in their respective piles near the front door. Once again, Jason's eyes settled on the wooden antique music box that had once belonged to Kim's grandmother. He reached down, picking up the box and opening its lid to inspect the mechanism responsible for playing the music. From the corner of his eyes, he saw Zack approach him.

"Man…I wish Kim would reconsider giving that up." Said Zack as he stood beside Jason, looking at the box in his friend's hand.

"Me too. It obviously means a lot to her." Jason replied as he continued to inspect the interior.

"Maybe there's a reason she doesn't want to hold on to it." Zack pondered.

"Could be…I just have a feeling she'll regret giving it away." said Jason.

"Well, I'm going to go wash up to eat." Zack replied, patting Jason on the shoulder.

"Right behind you, bro." Jason called after him, watching as Zack disappeared into the hallway leading towards the kitchen. He turned his attention back to the music box, thinking something over.

"Hey Jase, are you coming?" Trini asked, poking her head in from the hallway Zack had just disappeared down.

"Yeah, be right there." He replied, giving Trini a half-smile before she nodded and disappeared around the corner. Jason walked over to his gym bag, having brought it along with him on the chance of being able to get some training in if they finished their project early. He opened it and placed the music box inside, nestling it between his gi and towel to protect it. He zipped it back up, then turned to head down the hallway to the Hart's backyard where his friends were waiting for him.


"Okay, Phoenix, that was the last test." Said Billy, placing an elaborate scanning device onto a cart in the medical bay of the command center.

"Ai yi yi yi yi! I thought we'd never finish." Alpha exclaimed as he picked up the scanner Billy sat down. "Thanks for the help, Billy."

"You're welcome, Alpha." Billy replied as he started to put away all the devices they'd pulled out to measure and analyze Phoenix's powers and physical health.

"I'm going to put the data into the computer, while you finish up in here, Billy." The android said moving towards the entrance of the med bay. Before he stepped out, Alpha turned to Phoenix, who was handing something to Billy.

"Oh, Phoenix! I nearly forgot." Alpha made his way back towards her. "Zordon and I made this for you."

Alpha held out a robotic hand as Billy stood up between him and Phoenix. A crackle of amber energy flashed in Alpha's hand, then a small flame appeared then extinguished just as quickly as it had appeared, leaving a coin behind in the android's hand.

Billy and Phoenix's eyes both went wide as the small gold-toned object that Alpha summoned. "A power coin?" they both said in unison.

"Not exactly a power coin." Alpha began to explain as he placed it into Phoenix's hand. Though it resembled a power coin, instead of the raised details of the coin representing a pre-historic animal, the image was that of a bird with jagged edges to mimic fire and its wings open in flight was embossed on its face.

"Thank you, Alpha, but I cannot take on the ability of being a power ranger." Phoenix said as she looked from the coin in her hand to the android.

"As I said, it is not exactly a power coin." Alpha reiterated. "Zordon and I know your powers will not allow you to hold one of a power ranger. What we did was infuse this coin with a minor amount of your power and a minor amount of that of the Morphin Grid. This way, you will have the ability to enter the command center whenever you need."

Phoenix turned the coin over her in hand, then shook her head in understanding to Alpha. "Thank you, Alpha."

"You're welcome, Phoenix. Now, I should see to getting this data into the computer to be analyzed." Alpha said moving back to the entrance of the medical bay. "You and Billy come up when you're ready."

"We will, Alpha." Billy replied as Alpha walked out, leaving Billy and Phoenix alone together.

"Well, that was an unexpected turn of events." Billy commented turning his attention to Phoenix.

"Indeed, it was." Phoenix replied as she continued to look over the small object in her hands. Billy watched her with fascination as she played with the pseudo-power coin. Upon meeting Phoenix the previous day, he'd found her appearance to be rather intimidating. The fact that fire was the form her powers manifested in when she exercised them didn't help to improve his initial image. Now that he'd spent a good part of the morning and early afternoon with her, he was finding Phoenix to be rather captivating. "She does have something rather captivating about her."

"Phoenix?" Billy hesitantly called her by the name Trini had given her.

"Yes, Wil—Billy?" She corrected herself to use his nickname as she turned her glowing amber eyes from the small object in her hands to the young man in blue standing a few feet away from her.

Billy jumped slightly when her eyes landed on him. Despite that he was now more accustomed to being in Phoenix' presence, he still wasn't yet use to the intensity of her eyes. Seeing his reaction when she looked at him, her eyes softened and gave him a small smile.

"I could swear, her eyes change colors." Billy thought to himself as he saw the intensity of her eyes soften to a warm golden color as she looked at him. Suddenly, Billy felt an odd creeping of nerves crash over him and his face felt warm as if he was blushing.

"Billy?" Phoenix repeated his name when he failed to speak. She tilted her head to the side in curiosity, noticing the reddish tint of his face.

"Um…" he finally said finding his voice again. "What did Alpha mean by your powers not being able to handle the ones of a ranger?"

"Well…" she started. "Unlike your powers, that are tied to the Morphin Grid and gives you and the other rangers your enhanced abilities, and enabled you all the wield the power weapons and zords, my powers are tied to my physical being."

"You certainly know a great deal about our powers." Billy commented in regards to Phoenix's knowledge of the ranger powers.

"I was with Zordon and Alpha when they discovered the power coins." She explained. "I was put under the sleeping spell not too long after Rita somehow managed to gain the green power coin."

Billy shook his head in the affirmative as he compartmentalized Phoenix's explanation. "So, how does your power being integrated to your physical being inhibit you from taking on that of a ranger?"

"Trying to unite my powers to the Morphin Grid would cause my powers to become unstable. The same would happen to the grid because they are not intended to work with each other in that capacity." She answered.

"What would happen if you merged it to the Morphin Grid?" Billy inquired, his curiosity piquing, urging him to get a better understanding of Phoenix and her abilities in comparison to his and his teammates.

"They would overload each other, resulting in me being unable to control my powers. Which, is dangerous with my powers if I ever lost control over them as it could either destroy me or the morphin grid along with the ranger powers…or…" Phoenix paused hoping Billy would understand her abrupt hesitation.

"Or…both?" Billy asked in an attempt to finish her thought.

"Correct." She replied.

Billy's brows shot up as he took in the information. "I see now why Zordon made the decision to hide you from Rita." Billy replied, reflecting on what the rangers' leader told them about placing Phoenix into a deep sleep beneath the command center. At that moment, six familiar beeps sounded off from his communicator.

"Alpha?" Billy guessed, speaking into the device on his wrist.

"Billy, would you mind bringing Phoenix to the main chamber?" the android's voice rang out from the other end.

"Sure, Alpha. We'll be right there." He answered before deactivating the device.

"What is that?" Phoenix asked indicating the device strapped to Billy's wrist.

"Oh, it's a communicator." Billy replied.

"Communicator?" she asked, furrowing her brows in confusion.

"It's a communication device that is linked to the command center to keep the rangers in contact with Zordon and Alpha, and them with us." Billy explained as he held up his wrist for Phoenix to observe the device. "It's also linked into the teleportation unit, so we can travel to and from here as needed. I-" Billy's words stuck in his throat as Phoenix took his hand in hers to gently turn his wrist to further inspect the device.

"I-I…invented it." He finally managed to get out. Phoenix looked up at him, a spark of fascination glimmered in her eyes.

"Really?" she asked with surprise in her voice. Billy simply shook his head in the affirmative, suddenly unable to find his voice. "How does it work?"

"U-um…" Billy said, stumbling over his words. "The…"set" button." He answered, gently pulling his hand out of Phoenix's. Turning his wrist over, he unclasped his communicator and handed it to Phoenix for her to look at. Her touch, for some reason, was making his mind go blank when he tried to find words to respond to her.

"You press it once to talk, twice for it to teleport." Billy explained the functions of the device, indicating the yellow button sitting below the face of his communicator that activated it.

"It's very clever." Phoenix commented, handing the communicator back to its owner.

"Thank you." Billy said, blushing at her compliment while strapping his communicator back on to his wrist. "Um…we should probably head down to Alpha."

She nodded in agreement. "Yes, we should." Turning on her heel, Phoenix headed towards the entrance, Billy close behind her.

"Billy?" Phoenix said as they stepped out of the medical bay and proceeded down the hall towards the main chamber.

"Yes?" he replied.

"I'm curious…why did you come to assist Alpha with the tests on me?" she asked.

"Um…well…" Billy started, then hesitated. His initial reason for volunteering his services was simply because Phoenix intrigued him. "I can hardly tell her that."

"Alpha is a friend, and I speculated he could use the assistance." He replied, thinking of a plausible excuse. "In addition, at the probability of something happening to Zordon or Alpha, I thought that at least one of the rangers' having a better understanding of your powers would be beneficial if you were ever in the position to need aid."

"Understandable." Phoenix replied to Billy's reasoning. "I appreciate you taking the precaution."

"You're a friend of Zordon and Alpha. That makes you a friend to us." Billy stated, smiling at Phoenix as they entered the main chamber.